12838 - History of Italian Cinema (1)

Academic Year 2021/2022

Learning outcomes

By the end of this course students will:

- know the history of Italian cinematography;

- link cinema with the history of Italian culture;

- connect Italian film production with other forms of expression and in the wider context of the cultural industry.

Course contents

This course consists of an institutional part to study some of the problematic issues in the history of Italian cinema, and a monographic part dedicated to contemporary Italian cinema and public funding.

Readings/Bibliography

Istitutional part: Gian Piero Brunetta, Guida alla storia del cinema italiano (1905-2003), Einaudi, Torino, 2003;

Monographic part: Marco Cucco-Giacomo Manzoli (ed. by), Il cinema di Stato, il Mulino, Bologna, 2017.

Non-attending students shall integrate the syllabus with one (at their choice) among the following texts: Emiliano Morreale, Cinema d'autore degli anni sessanta (Il castoro cinema, Milano, 2011); Mariapia Comand, Commedia all'italiana (Il castoro cinema, Milano, 2011); Lucia Cardone, Il melodramma (Il castoro cinema, Milano, 2012), Alberto Pezzotta, Il western italiano (Il castoro cinema, Milano, 2012), Ilaria De Pascalis, Commedia nell'Italia contemporanea (Il castoro cinema, Milano, 2012), David Bruni, La commedia degli anni trenta (Il castoro cinema, Milano, 2013).


Teaching methods


Lectures with supporting videos

Assessment methods

Oral examination to assess whether the students have acquired the course contents. When too much students are registered to the exam date, the oral examination may be preceded by a preliminary open answer test to verify, in schematic and purely notional form, the basic knowledge of the students (titles and year of particularly representative films, filmography of the major Directors, history of events that mostly marked the history of Italian cinema). This test may take place on the morning of the date, and it will be followed by an interview. The final grade will result from the average of the two parts.

It will be assessed as excellent the performance of those students achieving an organic vision of the course contents, the use of a proper specific language, the originality of the reflection as well as the familiarity with the historiographic tolls for analysing the subject.

It will be assessed as discrete the performance of those students showing mostly mechanical or mnemonic knowledge of the subject, not articulated synthesis and analysis capabilities, a correct but not always appropriate language, as well as a scholastic study of the discipline. It will be assessed as barely sufficient the performance of those students showing learning gaps, inappropriate language, lack of knowledge of the discipline. It will be assessed as insufficient the performance of those students showing learning gaps, inappropriate language, no orientation within the recommended bibliography and inability to analyse the subject.


Teaching tools

Mandatory knowledge of the following films:

La nave di G. D'annunzio; Camicia Nera; Luciano Serra, pilota.; Rocco e i suoi fratelli; Roma ore 11; La vita agra; Il mio nome è Nessuno.; Ultimo tango a Parigi; La voce della luna; L'odore della notte;

For the monographic part: 10 Italian movies among the ones analyzed in the Marco Cucco-Giacomo Manzoli's book;

Film viewing is an integral part of the syllabus (the movies of the istitutional part are all available at the video library of Dipartimento delle Arti).

Office hours

See the website of Giacomo Manzoli

SDGs

Quality education

This teaching activity contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN 2030 Agenda.